Skip to content
Research Article Open access CC BY 4.0

Hepatitis B Knowledge, Risk Perception, Behavioral Skills, and Infection Burden among Students and Staff at Victoria University, Kampala, Uganda

Ismail Bamidele Afolabi, Abdulmujeeb Babatunde Aremu, Joshua Mborifue

International Journal of Pathogen Research · pp. 1–15 · Published 24 Jun 2024

10.9734/ijpr/2024/v13i4292

Abstract

Background: The global efforts concertedly endorsed towards eliminating viral hepatitis as a public health challenge necessitate the provision of adequate and pertinent information related to hepatitis B virus (HBV) infectivity, which will help in tackling the lingering chronicity of HBV infection in developing countries. This study aimed to assess the burden of HBV infection and                                 the underlying predictors of HBV infection risk among students and staff of Victoria University, Uganda. Methods: We captured data from 164 conveniently selected participants. Surface antigen for HBV (HBsAg) was detected using rapid tests. Analysis of variance (ANOVA), regression analysis, and chi- square tests were performed to ascertain the study hypotheses at a cut-off of (p<0.05). Results: The respondents’ mean age was 24.25 ± 25.64 years. Relatively half (56.1%) were males. Students (85.4%) were predominant. Regarding the burden of hepatitis B virus infection, HBsAg prevalence was 4.3%, observed among unmarried, first-year students, and residents of Central Uganda. Students’ year of study (χ2 = 10.323, p =<0.035) was significantly associated with HBsAg status. Furthermore, the respondents obtained mean scores of 3.45±4.10, 3.71±4.44, and 10.90±11.80 for knowledge, risk perception, and behavioral skills, respectively. Similarly, inadequate HBV-specific knowledge (F = 13.85, p<0.001), low risk perception (F = 13.22, p<0.001), and bad behavioral skills (F = 64.05, p<0.001) all predicted the risk of HBV infection. Conclusion: The findings affirm the lingering high endemicity of HBV infection in Uganda and imply an immediate need for targeted university-based hepatitis-B-related education and relevant vaccination policies such as mass vaccination in academic institutions to prevent HBV infection effectively in Uganda.

hepatitis B virus infection HBV-specific knowledge risk perception behavioral skills University

References (35)

  1. 1 Global, regional, and national age–sex specific all-cause and cause-specific mortality for 240 causes of death, 1990–2013: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2013 [DOI]
  2. 2 Management of hepatitis B: 2000—Summary of a workshop [DOI]
  3. 3 Countdown to 2030: eliminating hepatitis B disease, China [DOI]
  4. 4 Update on Diagnosis, Management, and Prevention of Hepatitis B Virus Infection [DOI]
  5. 5 Assessment of knowledge, attitudes and practices toward prevention of hepatitis B virus infection among students of medicine and health sciences in Northwest Ethiopia [DOI]
  6. 6 Hepatitis B vaccine knowledge and vaccination status among health care workers of Bahir Dar City Administration, Northwest Ethiopia: a cross sectional study [DOI]
  7. 7 Role of illness perception and self-efficacy in lifestyle modification among non-alcoholic fatty liver disease patients [DOI]
  8. 8 Hepatitis B Knowledge, Testing, and Vaccination History among Undergraduate Public Health Students in Ghana [DOI]
  9. 9 High burden of hepatitis B infection in Northern Uganda: results of a population-based survey [DOI]
  10. 10 Hepatitis B infection awareness, vaccine perceptions and uptake, and serological profile of a group of health care workers in Yaoundé, Cameroon [DOI]
  11. 11 Hepatitis B knowledge, perceptions and practices in the French general population: the room for improvement [DOI]
  12. 12 Hepatitis B and C seroprevalence among health care workers in a tertiary hospital in Rwanda [DOI]
  13. 13 High prevalence of hepatitis B and poor knowledge on hepatitis B and C viral infections among barbers: a cross-sectional study of the Obuasi municipality, Ghana [DOI]
  14. 14 Vaccination status, knowledge and awareness towards hepatitis B among students of health professions in Vientiane, Lao PDR [DOI]
  15. 15 Awareness and Vaccine Coverage of Hepatitis B among Cameroonian Medical Students [DOI]
  16. 16 Hepatitis B in Ghana's upper west region: A hidden epidemic in need of national policy attention [DOI]
  17. 17 Prevalence of hepatitis B virus infection and associated risk factors among pregnant women attending antenatal clinic in Mulago Hospital, Uganda: a cross-sectional study [DOI]
  18. 18 Knowledge, risk of infection, and vaccination status of hepatitis B virus among rural high school students in Nanumba North and South Districts of Ghana [DOI]
  19. 19 Hepatitis B virus perceptions and health seeking behaviors among pregnant women in Uganda: implications for prevention and policy [DOI]
  20. 20 Predictors of Hepatitis B Virus Infection Vaccine Hesitancy Among Pregnant Women Attending Antenatal Care at Lubaga Hospital, Kampala, Uganda [DOI]
  21. 21 Blood Transfusion in Sub‐Saharan Africa [DOI]
  22. 22 Prevalence of hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection among Makerere University medical students.
  23. 23 Management of hepatitis B in developing countries [DOI]
  24. 24 Hepatitis B vaccination during pregnancy for preventing infant infection [DOI]
  25. 25 Individualized management of pregnant women with high hepatitis B virus DNA levels [DOI]
  26. 26 Hepatitis B vaccination in Africa: mission accomplished? [DOI]
  27. 27 Hepatitis B in Moroccan-Dutch: a quantitative study into determinants of screening participation [DOI]
  28. 28 Prevalence of Hepatitis B among Students from the University of Lomé, Togo in 2015 [DOI]
  29. 29 Hepatitis B infection in HIV-1-infected patients receiving highly active antiretroviral therapy in Lomé, Togo: Prevalence and molecular consequences [DOI]
  30. 30 Dynamics of Hepatitis B infection prevention practices among pregnant women attending antenatal care at Lubaga Hospital Kampala, Uganda using the constructs of information-motivation-behavioural skills model [DOI]
  31. 31 Seroprevalence and factors associated with hepatitis B virus infection among the hill tribe youths, northern Thailand [DOI]
  32. 32 The prevalence of hepatitis B and C among blood donors at the National Blood Transfusion Center (CNTS) in Burundi. [DOI]
  33. 33 Seroprevalence of hepatitis B antibodies among international and domestic university students [DOI]
  34. 34 Associated Risk Factors and Seroprevalence of Hepatitis B among Pregnant Women Attending Antenatal Clinic in a Rural Setting of Cameroon (Penka-Michel) [DOI]
  35. 35 The Association of Hepatitis B and Polymyositis: Rare but Real [DOI]

Cited by 0

No indexed citations yet.

Article metrics

Real usage data collected on this platform.

9

Page views

0

PDF downloads

0

Outbound clicks

0

Citations

Views over time

Views by country

Approximate, from request IP at view time — not citizenship or institution. Countries with fewer than 5 views are grouped as "Other".

Traffic sources

Referring site, by host.

Views and downloads exclude known bots/crawlers. Citations combines this platform's own DOI-resolved index with each external source's own reported total — see Cited by above for individually listed citing works. Last refreshed 0 seconds ago.